Arts education has a history of being the first to suffer amid school budget cuts. With the COVID-19 pandemic and cuts in education funding, many Ontario youth have little or no access to artistic education.
The Space Between, a Carleton University student band, hopes to change that narrative.
The rock-funk band hosted the Rocktoberfest music festival from Oct. 26 to 28 at the Rainbow Bistro. Ticket and raffle sales were donated to OrKidstra, a local initiative musically empowering children from underserved communities.
OrKidstra works with more than 650 students and reaches five underserved neighborhoods in the Ottawa community. The charity delivers free music lessons, runs compassion-focused after-school programming and increases accessibility by giving youth instruments .
Hosting 10 Ottawa-based rock bands, including Carleton’s Noise Hotel, Rocktoberfest aimed to connect rock music lovers while transcending the genre.
“[OrKidstra] was the first organization we had thought of and reached out to,” said Pegan, the band’s lead vocalist and a Carleton music alum.
Shaheen, the band’s guitarist and a Carleton music student, said OrKidstra closely aligns with the band’s values. He said the band members understand the difficulty of getting a quality musical education.
“It’s very expensive and time-consuming,” Shaheen said. “If your only experience is in the school system, sometimes it’s a little bit lacklustre. It’s very hit-or-miss on how good of a music education you’ll get.”
Resist the Throne, a modern-metal band made up of Carleton students, performed at Rocktoberfest on Oct. 27.
Rohan Deshpande, Resist the Throne’s guitarist and a third-year music student, said he started writing music during the pandemic after seeing friends struggle with mental health.
He said his band was keen to participate in Rocktoberfest.
“It’s a really great cause,” Deshpande said.
The impact of a musical education is undeniable, according to Riaz Mohammed, vice-chair of OrKidstra.
“[Music] helps students gain important life skills and build community,” Mohammed said.
Mohammed added the organization was “excited” that The Space Between chose to support them and felt a “deep sense of pride in being a part of this fundraising event.”
Rocktoberfest also featured a costume contest, raffles and a photo booth.
“Not only do we get the element of you having fun at a rock concert and you get to do something good for your community, but you also just get to have a big party the whole weekend with all your friends,” Pegan said.
Featured image by Laura Collins.
